Deal Structuring - How Do Master Developers Get Paid on Site Work

Afternoon, WSO. I'm underwriting a large mixed-use deal in which my company would be the master developer. We'd develop some of the buildings ourselves while bringing on partners to do the multifamily and stand alone retail. Ideally, we'd like our partners to help contribute on the overall site infrastructure, but I'm struggling to think of the best financial structure for them to get paid with - essentially, how to answer "we're interested in helping, but how do we get paid on the horizontal work?" 

The site is a 99-year ground lease, so there would be monthly payments to the lessor. Would we charge a fee based on the cost of the sitework, charge a fee based on the value of the ground lease, charge fees based on both, or some other method? Additionally, is there any way for them to get an actual return on their investment beyond fees? 

3 Comments
 
Most Helpful

My firm looked at doing this somewhat recently for a non real estate focused entertainment group looking at selling about 300 acres of covered land.

We basically looked at charging a flat master developer fee, basically what we thought our time was worth, in addition to a 3-4% CM fee on all horizontal infrastructure costs (excluding demo on existing improvements) and then a 5% incentive fee on the Net Sale Proceeds on the land (Sale Proceeds less zoning/entitlement/permitting costs, commissions, legal, infrastructure, carry etc.).

 

Numquam ut aut voluptatum error eaque velit pariatur. Ea enim totam eos cupiditate qui aut nesciunt. Eos vitae quisquam reprehenderit iure molestiae quas saepe.

Ullam sit deserunt nemo dolorem. Autem modi qui excepturi omnis fugiat. Suscipit aut velit dignissimos. Blanditiis et dolores reprehenderit aperiam ut quidem. Enim soluta et odio mollitia necessitatibus maxime sunt.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.3%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.3%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • Goldman Sachs 02 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (44) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (79) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
10
bolo up's picture
bolo up
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”